Burglaries around Luna County are actually down compared to the previous year data, despite several high-dollar burglaries in recent months.

Data from Luna County and the city of Deming paint different pictures. In the county, according to statistics provided by the Luna County Sheriff's Office, burglaries dramatically fell in 2012 when compared to 2011, but even the general figures do not highlight the ebbs and flows of fluctuating occurrences of crime.

In 2011, the LCSO took reports for 80 burglaries over the course of the year, with the most, six, happening in December. The year-long figure fell to 35 for 2012, but the peak came in summer months when July saw 11 reports.

"Recently I've noticed in the reports we've been getting more burglaries and larcenies," LCSO Undersheriff Arturo Baeza said. "It was slow for awhile. In the summer is when they're more active."

In February of this year within the city, 21 burglaries were reported with 28 larcenies. In February 2012, according to city records, there were 26 larcenies and no burglaries reported.

For local law enforcement, 2013 began with several burglaries in which the victims have lost thousands of dollars. In January, a Luna County man was robbed while he was out-of-town. Upon returning from his trip, he found his home stripped of electronics and a gun safe that house about 10 rifles. The loss of the firearms alone amounted to over $10,000.

Advertisement

Baeza said special steps are taken by law enforcement to report the theft of firearms. Gun owners are advised to keep good records of firearms they own in the event one or more are stolen.

In the city, local Kathyrn Hodson found herself as the victim of a break-in. Fortunately for her, she was not home when the incident occurred, but the feeling of being violated remained.

"They took everything out of my closets, everything out of my drawers, bills, clothing, jewelry... everything was everywhere," she said. "They moved things from certain areas of my house to other rooms of my house. It has taken a month to figure out where stuff goes."

She said it appeared as though the robbers were organizing items to make future trips to the house easier. A television was also torn off of her wall, with her electronics also taken.

"They got in through the back door and my house is fully protected. It's locked up," she explained. "You think that nobody is going to break into your house. It's not like it was really accessible, they really had to go through a lot to get in. By the time they got into my backdoor, you figure it took them two minutes, tops."

Rafael Camacho, 48, was arrested on allegations of aggravated burglary in relation to that incident and on conspiracy and possession of a firearm by a felon.

His case was recently transferred from Luna County Magistrate Court to the Sixth Judicial District Court.

ODESSA, Texas (AP) — A West Texas man has been charged with impersonating an officer by using sirens and flashing lights to skip to the head of the drive-thru line at a fast-food restaurant. Full Story